Used
by firegirl56
Summary: When Bridget, the younger sister of one of Coates Academy's most troublesome students, arrives at school, she throws a wrench into Diana and Caine's relationship...or does she? Drake/OC, Caine/Diana, Caine/OC.
1. Coates Academy

**Okay, so you might have realized that I haven't really posted any new fanfics recently. Well, I have, but those ones were really stupid. So, I am now taking the time to write a more serious and long story. And I decided to put some information on the story here so that you can better understand it. It's also because I'm bad at doing those outside summary things.**

**Characters: Caine, Drake, Diana, Penny, Panda, Bug, Jack, Brianna, Dekka, etc.**

**OCs: Isabella (14) and Bridget (13)**

**Pairings: Caine/Diana, slight Caine/OC, and Drake/OC.**

**Setting: Coates Academy pre-FAYZ, then later following the storyline of Caine and Co.**

**I love reviews more than you could ever know. So please oh please review! :D**

"Honey, it's probably just temporary." My father said over dinner. It was just my parents and I, and soon, it would just be them. It hurt a lot to think that they were sending me away, especially after all the things I'd heard about Coates Academy. Then again, the things that happened there were exactly why I was going.

"Sweetie, I know you don't want to leave your friends, but it's for your sister. She needs you there with her to get through this." My father nodded in agreement, but I just glared at my plate and stabbed a piece of broccoli.

"I don't want to go to some stupid school for freaks halfway across the country!" I snarled, glaring at them. My mother glared right back.

"It is most certainly not a school for freaks," she spat. "It is for privileged young people who need to learn how to be successful in life." I rolled my eyes and shoved my chair back. Before either of my parents could yell at me, I ran up the stairs and down the hall to my room before slamming it closed as hard as I could. Then I plugged my iPod up to my speakers and blasted the most angst-filled music I could find, feeling angry but satisfied as everything in my room seemed to vibrate. A few hours later, my mother knocked on my door and let herself in carrying a laundry basket full of clean clothes. "Start packing." She said curtly and left me alone. I felt tears forming in my eyes as I shoved some clothes haphazardly into the suitcase, along with a few other belongings. Coates had a uniform, so I wouldn't need much.

At that moment, I was angry at everyone. I was angry at Isabella for being so screwed up and introducing the concept of getting rid of problem children to my parents. I hated a boy named Drake for hanging out with Isabella and only helping her to rebel and make the therapist's life hell. I resented the therapist for sending a letter home to my parents about how Isabella wasn't hanging out with good people. And I despised my parents for deciding the perfect solution would be to send me, their only other child, a thousand miles away to a school for rich sociopaths. But there was nothing I could do about it.

The next Monday, bright and early, my father took me to the airport where I boarded a flight to California. I slept, glared, and sulked for the next several hours until the plane touched down again. When I got off, someone from the school was there to drive me the rest of the way down a highway and along a country road. I saw the Pacific Ocean glittering in the distance behind a few buildings. "That's Perdido Beach," said the driver as he drove. "It's a pretty small town. You probably won't see much of the kids from there." I nodded silently, and when we pulled up, I grabbed my suitcase and started up the steps of the main building.

Just then, the doors swung open, and a few people walked outside. They were talking and smiling but did so in a more sinister, mischievous way. I saw Isabella right away. Then I noticed a sandy haired boy with a shark-like smile, a pretty Asian girl who looked to be about my age, and a gorgeous girl who looked incredibly bored with everything. They walked straight towards me, and Isabella introduced me with a wave. "This is my sister Bridget, everyone. Now everyone introduce yourself to Bridget."

"I'm Penny," The Asian girl said with a slight smile.

"Diana," said the beautiful girl indifferently, but she shook my hand anyway, holding it for a little longer than necessary.

"Drake," the blonde boy said with a twisted grin that scared me, but I felt a surge of resistant anger. He was the one who influenced my sister. He was the reason I was sent here.

"Caine Soren," said another boy I hadn't noticed before, but once I saw him, I couldn't believe I hadn't seen him. He had dark hair and dark eyes with a cold glint that was almost as scary as Drake's grin, but Caine's was paired with a charismatic, easygoing smile that made him seem less threatening. Still, he carried himself with a certain air of power and regality that was mysterious and charming. I had to fight a blush creeping up my neck. Caine shook my hand and smiled at me. As I pulled away, I caught a glimpse of Penny and Diana watching me, Penny with more jealousy and anger, Diana with somewhat detached interest.

"Well, a warm welcome to Coates, the school of hell," Diana said sarcastically. Drake put his arm around Isabella's waist, and she smiled at him. I felt myself get even angrier. I was sent to this place just for Isabella's screwed up boyfriend?

"Drake, Isabella, if you could please go somewhere private to kiss, I think we would all be grateful."

"I second Fearless Leader's motion," Diana added, looking finally interested in something. "Seeing Drake alone is scary enough, but with a girlfriend? I think we should spare the new girl the nightmares." That something she was interested in seemed to be annoying Drake. His eyes narrowed and he gave her the finger.

"F**k you, Ladris," Drake said, and leaned in to kiss Isabella.

"!" called an angry voice from the lobby. "WHAT HAVE I TOLD YOU ABOUT PUBLIC DIPLAYS OF AFFECTION!" we turned to see a small flustered man who must have been the school therapist yelling to Drake about a month's worth of detention.

"I'm very sorry, Mr. Johnson," Drake called back at the top of his lungs, "But if girls were allowed in the boys' dorms and vice versa, I wouldn't NEED to display it in public!" The therapist went from red to a unique shade of purplish-blue before he finally gave up and stormed back into his office. Drake turned back to us and grinned.

We all headed into the school building, and Penny showed me the way to the dorm I'd be sharing with Isabella and her. "Hurry, before someone else does something crazy," Penny said, and we left Caine, Diana, Drake, and Isabella laughing behind us.


	2. Dinner and an Alliance

**Chapter two is up! And I don't feel like putting a long author's note, so here's a summary: Review. I don't own GONE. Review. Penny gets powers. Review. Penny shows actual emotion. Review. I ate cheesecake today. Review.**

Penny led me up a staircase and through a few hallways until we came to a nondescript door, numbered 312. "This is the room you'll be sharing with Isabella and me," Penny said, then opened the door and flicked on the light switch. The room was small but not cramped. A bunk bed was in one corner, and a single bed was in another. A small closet was open, revealing clothes and old uniforms haphazardly shoved inside. A table was near the center of the room with two chairs for studying, and a small couch was under the window at the far side of the room. A tiny television hung in the corner where the wall met the ceiling. "Well, go ahead and dump your stuff," Penny said, and I put my suitcase and bags in a corner.

I turned to find Penny glaring at me with her arms crossed. For a second I had a dizzy spell and saw a vision of a huge monster with eyes like fire and teeth like knives grinning down at me. I was filled with absolute, complete terror for a single moment, but I blinked and it was gone. "So," Penny spat, "I see you've taken an interest in Caine."

I blushed. "No, w-wh-what do you mean? I-"

"Oh, shut up," Penny said. "I know what liking Caine looks like." She softened then and turned away. "Whatever. It's not like we're dating or anything." I went to stand next to her.

"What do you mean?" I asked. Penny was actually really pretty. She had clear skin, long hair that framed her face well, not to mention she was model-thin.

"Diana," Penny said resentfully, and I remembered that beautiful girl from before. "She's sarcastic, rude, a total b!tch, but gorgeous. Caine's obsessed with her. And all she ever does is use him."

"Well, he'll probably get tired of her eventually, right?" I asked, and Penny nodded uncertainly. I couldn't believe I was actually giving guy advice to a girl I barely knew. I had never even had a boyfriend before. "Look, since we both like him, let's help each other out. We try to stop Diana from keeping all of his attention, and then we help each other out to get his attention. Sound like a plan?"

Penny turned to me with a suspicious look on her face, and I saw the monster again, roaring, preparing to strike and sink its teeth into my flesh. Then it was gone as quickly as it had come, and Penny nodded. "Fine. Friends?"

"Friends," I assured her, and she tossed me a headband.

"Well, if we're helping each other, then you need to fix your hair desperately. It isn't showing your good looks at all." I put the headband on and ran a hand through my hair in an attempt to untangle it. "Better," Penny nodded, and then she opened the door. "Time for dinner," she said, and I followed her out, back to the cafeteria, where all the students were gathered around small tables. I got a plate and picked out a lump of mashed potatoes, a piece of what looked like beef, and some broccoli. I took a glass of water and followed Penny to the table with my sister and her group of friends: Caine, Drake, and Diana. Caine smiled at me when he saw me, and my heart sped up as I smiled back tentatively.

The meal was pretty much just filled with jokes and laughter between the others at the table. My sister made no effort to include me, and no one really talked to me, so I just listened.

"So I grab this kid and literally lift him up and pin him to the wall, I'm not even joking, and he wets his f**king pants. I just started laughing, and then the kid just faints!"

"And then I said, what the hell. I'm not a dumbass."

"Dekka seems to be getting more powerful…"

I froze for a second, focusing on what Caine had just said. But the cafeteria was loud, and I couldn't hear him above the other noises in the room. I gave up trying to listen. He was speaking to Drake, who only looked half interested with one arm draped over Isabella's shoulders as she talked to Diana, who looked slightly less bored than she had when I first saw her. I watched Caine talk to Drake as Penny shifted her gaze to a kid sitting across the room who was maybe three or four years younger than us.

"Who's that?" I asked quietly, and Penny shook her head before turning back to the table.

"Bug," she answered. "He's a creepy little kid. He's always staring." I saw another kid who looked about my age sitting by himself, shoveling food into his mouth while furiously typing on a laptop. He was blond and wore big glasses. I saw a group of loud, obnoxious-looking boys at one table, a redhead girl who looked about my age or maybe a little younger laughing loudly with a group of girls, and a huge African-American girl watching the redhead intensely.

After dinner, Penny led me back to the dorm, where I had to get used to changing in front of her, which was kind of awkward. I had never had to share a room in my life, even at home. Isabella and I always had our own. After going to the girls bathroom to brush my teeth and wash my face, I went back to my room, where I collapsed on the top bunk after a truly exhausting day.


	3. Breakfast with Psychopaths

**Okay, due to a review I received earlier, I just wanted to let you guys know how hard it tis for me to write this with Penny in a good light. I am a hardcore Caina fangirl, so I, like most people, despise Penny. It's so hard to make her seem like a person too, when all my fangirlness is screaming "DIEDIEDIEDIEDIE PENNY!" So I just wanted to let you know that I hate Penny, hate writing her as a decent person, and do plan on making her evil as chapters go on. She isn't really mentioned in the first few books from what I recall, so I can really do whatever I want with her up until about the LIES point. **

**ARE YOU HAPPY NOW, B SYMPHONY?**

**Anyway, review and get a magical surprise in the next chapter! And feel free to give suggestions! I love them almost as much as reviews! :D**

I woke up early the next morning. No one else was up yet, so I dressed silently and went to try and find my way to breakfast alone. I walked through hallways that all looked the same for a while before finally seeing someone at the end of the hall. I sped up, hoping to ask for directions. "Um, excuse me?" I asked, and the person turned around. It was Caine. I felt my stomach fill with butterflies.

"Hello, Bridget." Caine said smoothly, flashing me a quick smile. "Are you lost?"

"Well…yes," I admitted, blushing. "How did you know?"

"I remember being new," Cane said sympathetically, placing a reassuring hand on my shoulder, which made my heart beat faster. "I know how hard it is to get around in an unfamiliar place. So, you're trying to get to breakfast, aren't you?" I nodded, and Caine steered me down a different hallway, never taking his hand off my shoulder.

Once we got to the cafeteria, Caine and I got breakfast and sat down at the same table as yesterday. We talked for a few minutes, and Caine was the perfect listener, nodding and laughing in all the right places, and patiently waiting to speak. Soon more kids started to file into the room and get their breakfasts. Penny came first, and she looked jealous when she saw Caine and I sitting together. Waved her over and she sat down next to Caine, making me jealous. Isabella was next, looking perfect as usual, but not in the way you'd think. Her hair was sloppy in a way that looked grungy and stylish, her acne-less face in her usual smirk. Even the way she wore her uniform suggested, "I'm badass and I sure as hell know it, so back off, b!tch." Next to her, I just looked plain.

When Diana arrived, all conversation between Caine and I stopped. His eyes never left her from the second she entered the room until she drew close enough to notice his gaze and object. Diana also gave off a tough girl vibe like my sister. Sure enough, she and Isabella immediately started talking, while Caine watched Diana silently.

"Ugh, I hate Dekka so much," I heard Diana say, and I shifted my gaze to the kids in the cafeteria, trying to see who Dekka was. "Yesterday in class she was just staring at me, and I kept thinking, ew, I'm not gay."

I saw Drake entering the room, half asleep. His hair was askew and he had dark circles under his eyes. He was walking in the opposite direction of a tall African-American girl who was carrying a tray of oatmeal and a glass of orange juice.

I noticed Caine's eyes darken, but in a second it was gone, replaced by a look of exhaustion. He reached out his arms and yawned loudly, but his eyes never left a spot right in front of the girl's feet. Suddenly the girl tripped over thin air and went sliding across the floor as her food went flying. She got up with a calm expression that hid fury, but then she saw Drake, who had been hit by the orange juice and the oatmeal. Her eyes widened in what looked like more surprise than fear, but some of the kids sitting nearby had expressions of pure terror on their faces, staring up at Drake like he had a mutated arm or something.

"Oh my God," Isabella whispered, equal parts horrified and laughing, "Drake!" He was fuming, shoulders rising, ears practically steaming. One kid started to laugh but a look from Drake shut him up immediately.

"YOU!" He screamed at the girl, and lunged, knocking her to the floor and wrapping his hands around her neck. Just then the principal entered.

"DRAKE MERWIN WHAT HAVE I TOLD YOU ABOUT PUBLIC DISPLAYS OF-" The man froze when he saw that the girl on the ground wasn't my sister. "Dekka?" He asked incredulously, and the girl gasped for breath in response. "DRAKE MERWIN! STOP STRANGLING DEKKA!"

Two huge men came in and peeled Drake away, who was still screaming threats and obscenities. They dragged him to our table, where my sister put an arm around him to try and calm him down. The principal helped the girl up and assisted her in a walk out of the cafeteria and to the nurse's office, or possibly the hospital. "She'll be all right," Caine observed apathetically. "Nurse Temple's shift is almost over by now, but she'll probably take the time to help her."

Drake still had a manic look in his eyes, teeth bared in a way that looked almost animal. Still, my sister never wavered. She didn't show any fear, but she slapped Drake's face hard. His head whipped towards her, and I was terrified at the pure bloodthirstiness of the look he gave her. "Drake," Isabella said slowly, "Calm down. Find your happy place. Remember the puppy?"

It sounded completely crazy, but Penny gave me a look that said I would be brutally murdered if I questioned anything. "A golden retriever…" Drake said, still angry, but his breathing was slowing. "It's eyes got all milky."

"Yes, it did." Isabella said, nodding slowly as she held Drake's face in her hands, looking straight into his eyes, keeping him from jumping up and mauling someone. "Now, just imagine Dekka, but her eyes are all milky, and she's split in half, and her guts and blood are all over the place, and there are bugs crawling around inside her, eating her from the inside out." Drake laughed then, a happy laugh that disturbed me almost as much as what my sister was describing.

"Well, on that happy note, I'm getting out of here before he kills me," Diana said, standing up and skirting around the puddle of oatmeal and juice on the floor to return her tray. Drake's wild eyed manic glare was back, but my sister slapped him again.

"Drake!" She yelled in his face, and his eyes focused and looked somewhat less crazy.

"I hate her," Drake said in a dark tone. "She covered me in f**king oatmeal."

"Hey," my sister said with a mischievous grin, "You look cute in oatmeal." Then she kissed him, and we all looked away awkwardly. When they were done, Drake still looked annoyed, but nothing like the psychotic look he had had in his eyes earlier.

"Whatever. I'm going to go change, maybe beat up Bug on the way." Drake said, standing up.

"Not without me, you're not," Isabella said, and then I realized why they were together. They both liked seeing other people get hurt. The two of them left, and Penny went to go put away her tray when Caine turned to me.

"I've been meaning to tell you," Caine said charmingly, "Your hair looks really pretty today. You should do it like that more often."

I beamed back at him. "Thanks," I said, trying to hide how good it made me feel.

"Anytime. See you around?" He asked casually, and I nodded. Then he left and I rushed to find Penny and tell her what had just happened.


	4. A Special Announcement

**SPOILER! THERE'S A CLIFHANGER AT THE END OF THIS LONG CHAPTER. :D And I'm so excited to write the next chapter, which will be the event mentioned in this chapter. I'm literally giggling out of fangirliness in excitement for it. It's going to be so much fun. ;D**

**And I'm having a contest! Tell me what you think happened at the last Coates student function and what you predict people will be wearing to the next chapter's event! (Sorry for being so vague, but I don't want to spoil this chapter by telling you what the event is.) Whoever has the best idea for the last Coates student function and whoever gets a majority of the outfit ideas correct will win my virtual love and an appearance in a future chapter of the story as an OC! (The two things will be judged separately, so there will be two winners and two new characters.)**

**So, read, review, predict, and get ready for the best student function Coates Academy has ever had! **

A few weeks passed. I became better and better friends with Penny. Sometimes, though, when she was in a bad mood, I would get these flashes of monsters and scary things. I just shook it off and figured I wasn't getting enough sleep. My sister remained rebellious with Drake, getting in trouble for beating up kids and kissing Drake in public. Diana was best friends with my sister, so it was harder to hide my jealousy of her. And Caine…he was as charming and handsome as ever. My heart leapt whenever he looked at me. I was crushing on him, big time.

Then, one Monday morning in the dining hall, a voice came over the loudspeaker. "Good morning, students," it greeted us. "Please remember that classes will be cancelled on Halloween, and after much debate amongst the faculty, we have decided to put the events of the last student function behind us and host Coates Academy's infamous All Hallows Eve Celebration. Come in costume, and dance the night away to both festive and current music. There will be food, punch, and snacks, and a raffle. Thank you, and have a good day."

The entire dining hall immediately erupted in talk and gossip. People were glancing around for someone they could ask. I couldn't help but cross my fingers and hope that Caine would ask me. I knew it was hopeless, but I could still dream. "Sounds fun," my sister remarked. "Diana, are you going?" Diana shrugged and looked around the hall in disdain.

"Depends on who asks me," she shrugged. Caine immediately looked at her. "Don't even think about it, Caine," Diana said with a cruel laugh. "I bet you'll never get a date." Caine frowned.

"Lots of girls love me," he defended himself. Diana laughed even harder.

"Uh-huh, sure, Caine," she replied, getting up to leave, "Whatever you want to believe."

"Well, I'm definitely going, Drake grinned. "It'll be even more fun to scare kids while in a terrifying costume. Hey, Isabella, want to go to the dance with me?" My sister smiled.

"Sure, but only if I get to wear a badass costume," she agreed, and Drake half scowled, half grinned at her. "What about you, Bridget?" Isabella asked. I immediately blushed, reminding myself that no one knew about my fantasies of Caine asking me to the dance.

"Oh, I-I don't know," I answered, "I mean, if someone asks me…" I trailed off, blushing. Penny nodded in agreement with me.

"Well, then I'll just find someone to ask you out." My sister said with a smile that could have been either kind or mischievous. I smiled back gratefully, but secretly worried she'd set me up with someone totally gross, like that fat Chunk kid in my math class. "And if they don't…" She looked at Drake and they both grinned.

"Drake, I swear, if you say 'It's clobbering time' I will throw you into a wall." Caine interrupted, and Drake gave him the finger. "Hey!" Caine said in a warning tone, and raised a hand. Drake glared and got up to leave.

"Hey, Caine, want to make it any more obvious?" My sister said in a tone that said 'Shut the hell up, idiot!' Caine raised his hands in mock surrender and followed Drake out. I wondered what they were talking about. When he was gone, Isabella rolled her eyes and turned back to me.

"What happened at the last student function?" I asked Isabella, and she grinned evilly. "Well…it wasn't entirely my fault," she began, "I mean, a few other kids got in trouble too." She stopped, not really sure how to explain it without putting all of the blame on herself. Penny shook her head.

"Come on, Isabella, we all know you were the one who…" she trailed off. "Never mind. It isn't really a story to tell while eating. Especially not good for a public place." I looked at my sister incredulously. She just smiled and took a sip of water.

"It was one hell of a good time, though," she admitted, and I shook my head, not wanting to know. "Anyway, about your dates…" Penny and I looked at each other, knowing exactly who we both wanted to go with, but not about to tell her. "Ugh, the thing is, besides Drake and Caine, there are honestly no good looking guys in this entire f**king school. It's pathetic. And no, Drake is under no circumstances up for debate. He is MINE. Got it?"

"The guy's a freaking psychopath," Penny rolled her eyes. "You're the only person I know who would ever like him." My sister nodded like that was a reasonable answer, then turned back to the matter at hand.

"Oh! How about Frederico? He's okay looking, and not that much of an a**hole. You should go with him!" I rolled my eyes and shook my head, fantasizing about the boy who had just left the table.

…..

By lunchtime the next day, everyone was in an uproar about the dance. It was as if someone had flooded the entire place with radiation that stopped us all from thinking straight. Every time I saw a person of the opposite gender, I would clam up and break into a mental chorus of: Is he good looking? Will he ask me out? Would I say yes? Do I look ask-out-able? And whenever I talked to Caine, I was almost petrified.

As our little group sat at our usual table, we were talking about the dance (of course). "Okay, so how does this costume sound?" Drake asked us all and showed a crude drawing of him with a whip of some sort. It was hard to tell, seeing as it was done on a napkin. "I wanted something more unusual than the same old Halloween axe-murderer, you know?" My sister nodded, most likely imagining the different ways to kill someone with the costume. Diana did not share the same feeling.

"Yes, because we all know you like to keep your victims guessing, Drake," she said drily. "What will it be this time? A bullet, whip, axe, or chainsaw?" Caine snickered, and Drake glared at him. Diana grabbed the drawing out of my sister's hands. "What the hell, Drake? You look like Indiana Jones in five-year-old's-drawing form." Everyone but Drake laughed. He snatched back the drawing, crumpling it up and throwing it in Caine's face. Somehow, the wad of paper changed course midair and missed his head. Caine grinned.

"Seriously, Caine?" Diana said, rolling her eyes. "It's not like the world has to know."

"Know what?" I asked in confusion.

"Nothing" replied everyone at the table in unison. I frowned. I hated being kept in the dark.

"Whatever," Drake said. "Any of you losers have dates yet?" He looked at all of us. I looked at my plate, not meeting anyone's eyes. Drake grinned when none of us spoke up. "That's what I thought," he said with a superior smile that made Caine glare. "I'm out of here. See you b!tches later." He left the table, and my sister followed him. Caine looked at his food, deep in thought. I knew he was thinking about someone he could ask, but I wasn't going to kid myself and think he might ask me.

"Maybe I should ask Panda," Diana mused, assessing the lanky dark haired boy on the other side of the room. "He's pretty cute, even if he isn't exactly my type." I watched as Caine's dark eyes narrowed in jealousy. "Don't even think about it," Diana said, also noticing Caine's expression. Again, I was left feeling as if there was something going on that I didn't know about.

"Fine," Caine said flatly, "I just don't think-"

"Do me a favor, Caine," Diana practically snarled, "And shut the hell up." Caine frowned but obeyed her. I could see what Penny had said weeks earlier, about Caine doing whatever she said, completely under her spell. I felt envy rise in my chest, and tried to keep it from showing on my face. _She's my sister's best friend,_ I thought, _my sister's best friend._ "You know what?" Diana suddenly announced? "I think I will." She walked over, confident as always, and Caine, Penny, and I watched as she said something to Panda. All the boys around him started hooting and pounding Panda on the back. The poor boy turned bright red and nodded, a helpless victim of peer pressure at its finest.

Still, he had done well. Now he had the hottest girl at Coates going with him to the dance. I rolled my eyes at Penny, who smiled and raised her eyebrows. Then I realized what she meant. With Diana taken, Caine had to ask someone else of he'd look like a loser. And Caine Soren does not like to look like a loser. I smiled back at Penny. We still had a chance.

On my way to class a few hours later, Caine came up to me. I assumed he was going to ask about the homework, so I tried to put the fantasy of him asking me to the dance out of my head, but I couldn't help but blush a little. He opened his mouth, and instead of asking for my homework, something entirely different came out of his mouth.

"Bridget," Caine said with an irresistible smile, "would you like to go to the dance with me?"


	5. King for a Date

**Wow, it's a bit late for Halloween, isn't it? XD Sorry, but I've been really busy and unmotivated. Anyway, only 1 person reviewed about the previous Coates dance and no one guessed the costumes, so no one wins the contest. Enjoy the chapter! :D**

When I walked into my dormitory after spending the morning in the library studying, I stopped cold. The room that had been perfectly clean when I walked in was completely trashed. It looked like a Gossip Girl had thrown up in there: there were magazines emblazoned with models and tips on how to get guys strewn all over the floor, there were clothes all over the beds and practically exploding from the tiny closet, and an iPod was blasting Ke$ha at a high volume. I heard laughter and talking coming from the bathroom, so I put my bag down carefully and treaded lightly through the mess, the inner OCD part of me having a seizure.

Inside were my sister and Penny, laughing and getting along like the best of friends while doing each other's hair and makeup. I felt oddly out of place. I really wasn't good with this whole girly-looking thing. I had sort of made peace with the fact that I wasn't pretty like my sister, Diana, or even Penny. They looked up when they saw me, and immediately took stock. "Hey, Bridget!" Penny said.

"Oh my freaking God, Bridget, why the f**k were you in the goddamn library all morning? You've missed a whole morning of preparations!" Isabella exclaimed, and I winced as the curse words rolled off of her tongue. I wasn't really comfortable with cursing, either. "Anyway, get the hell into your costume RIGHT NOW," she continued, shooing me out until I had met her requirements. "We have a lot of work to do." She slammed the bathroom door in my face, and I turned to try and find my costume in this mess.

After searching for the better part of ten minutes, I found it: a long white dress, a pair of fake wings, and halo headband. I slipped on the dress, feeling uncomfortable as I looked at myself in the mirror. I wasn't sexy or even slightly pretty, but I put on the little halo and wings on and knocked on the bathroom door. My sister let me in and assessed me. "This is such an unoriginal costume, Bridget," she tsk-ed, "Is this really the best you could come up with?" I huffed out a breath, and she dragged me into the already crowded bathroom to put on my makeup.

"Well, what are you two being?" I said defensively, and they both grinned.

"A ninja," Penny said, and I noticed the tae kwon do style clothes she was wearing. There was some sort of scary looking dragon stitched in gold and silver on the side.

My sister looked even more stunning than usual. She had on a black dress that was tight fitting at the top but loose and long at the bottom. Her black hair was in an elaborate loose side twist that tumbled around her shoulder in slight waves. I watched as she put a colored contact in one eye. When she turned to look at me, one eye was its regular brilliant blue, and the other was a piercing green. She added a thick coat of eyeliner and mascara, then fluttered her eyelashes to dry it.

"I'm being an evil mastermind woman," she said with an evil smile. "Drake is going to be my henchman." She grabbed a dagger that was most likely real off of the counter and stuck it in a fancy holder in her belt.

"I'm surprised he agreed to that," Penny said, and my sister smiled a little more and wiggled her eyebrows.

"Well, he wasn't at first, but he just needed a little…persuasion," Penny made a face, and my sister got to work on her makeup. Then she stopped. "Oh my God, this song is so f**king stupid," she declared. "Bridget, why do you even have this on your iPod?"

"You didn't ask to use my iPod!" I said indignantly, but she paid no attention. I watched as she scrolled through the list of songs until she found some Eminem. "I didn't put that on there!" I added, and she turned to me.

"Oh, by the way, I used your money to buy some songs. I'm expanding your musical tastes." I rolled my eyes. Of course she would call it that.

Isabella outlined Penny's eyes with eyeliner and mixed some glittery eye shadows together before using a brush to apply it. I watched in awe as she made Penny even prettier.

Finally, it was my turn. I sat down on a chair in front of the mirror, closed my eyes, and waited for the torture to begin. After a few minutes, when my sister was happy with my face, she allowed me to open my eyes. I gasped. I looked gorgeous.

I was surprised when I saw the clock. We had fifteen minutes before the dance would start. Penny was going with Andrew, Isabella with Drake, and I with Caine. I could barely contain my excitement. Andrew arrived first. He knocked on the door, and Penny opened it with a smile. She said goodbye to us and left with him, happy as a clam. My sister kicked around for a few minutes before finally getting up. "I'll go find Drake," she said, "I can't wait to see what he finally picked for his costume."

"I thought you were coordinating it with him?" I asked, slightly confused. Isabella made a face.

"Hell no! Coordinating is for losers. Drake is just my henchman, I don't give a f**k what he wears." Again, I winced as the language hit my ears. "Oh, don't be such a goody-goody," she rolled her eyes. "Live a little, why don't you. Anyway, I'm out of here. See you later, Bridget." She left, slamming the door behind her. Finally, I was alone. Not five minutes later, I heard a knock at the door. I took a deep breath and tried to calm my racing heart. Caine was here.

I opened the door and was surprised by what I saw. He had on a crown and a long red cape over a puffy shirt and dress slacks. "A king?" I guessed, and he beamed at me. I fought the urge to blush.

"You guessed right. And you…well, you do look like an angel." The last part was said with such naïve charm and a tiny bit of embarrassment in his smile, like he was shy to admit it. He thought I looked like an angel. I almost died and went to heaven. Instead of passing out, I beamed and stepped outside. He took my hand in his, and I closed the door behind me. Together, we headed to the dance.


End file.
